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NATCHEZ, Miss. (AP) - Weather delays are pushing the construction of a storm shelter near Natchez High School into late July, says Adams County Emergency Management Director Robert Bradford.

The work had been expected to be completed this spring.

“The weather has been a thorn in our side, but you can’t control the weather,” Bradford told The Natchez Democrat (https://bit.ly/1LkgbyQ ).

Bradford said any extension of the contract would not cost the county extra.

The 10,000-square-foot shelter is meant to withstand the storm force of an EF5 tornado or hurricane equivalent. It will be for shortterm evacuations.

The walls for the building have been constructed, Bradford said, but crews still have to pour the concrete floors and roof. Concrete cannot be poured when temperatures fall below a certain point.

“Once they get (the floor and roof) done, they are going to start on the parking lot, and once the parking lot is paved, they can bring in trucks and the work can continue regardless,” he said. “When the concrete is poured, all they have to do is run a little conduit on the inside.”

The shelter has price tag of $3.4 million. The county’s share is $171,000. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is paying the rest.